SEO and PPC: The difference explained

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If you want to enjoy better search engine rankings, two of the most effective methods that you can use today are Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay Per Click (PPC). Both SEO and PPC have the potential to maximize search engines to generate traffic to your website, but both also differ in their own approach. Deciding on which route to take can be difficult especially if you are unfamiliar with both worlds to begin with. So you won’t have to spend countless hours researching SEO and PPC, we have done the heavy lifting for you and will present you with a comparison of both so it would be easy for you to choose which one is ideal for you and your business.

Defining SEO and PPC

Before we begin, let us first know what the definition of SEO and PPC is.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a method of online marketing that improves the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search engine results. When we say organic, we mean those listings on search engine results from pages that appear because of their relevance to a keyword and not because they are advertised. This simply means that SEO is free because you can still get great visibility and clicks by simply positioning your website in better search engine rankings.

Pay Per Click (PPC) is another method of online marketing where you will pay a certain amount every time your advertisement is clicked. These are the ads that you normally see at the top of search engines. With PPC, you are essentially buying visits to your site.

The Costs

As revealed earlier, SEO is virtually free while PPC will cost you for every click. However, there is no such thing as free in the world of marketing and there are factors that you need to consider to determine the real cost of each.

Hiring an SEO Agency – Unless you are SEO guru, you will need to hire an SEO agency to conduct SEO for your website. If you are unfamiliar with SEO, then you will have a difficult time doing it on your own. Hiring an SEO professional will cost a few thousand dollars a month and is an ongoing cost until you decide that you no longer require his services.

PPC – When it comes to PPC, the cost you incur is relatively straightforward as your payments will depend on the number of clicks on your ad. But just like SEO, PPC requires constant management. While you can do it on your own, it would be more effective to hand the reigns over to a professional who knows how to handle PPC campaigns. So aside from the click payments for your ad, you will need to spend additional on outside management costs.

Search Results Location

PPC Ads are normally located on top of organic results, which mean Google, and other search engines prioritize them first simply because of the payment they bring in every time a person clicks the ad. It’s also important to note that your ad’s position is out of your hands. Whether you are on top of all the ads will depend on how much you bid and the quality of your landing page.

Results for Each

How quickly you can enjoy significant results will vary for each. When it comes to SEO, it will normally take a number of months before you notice improvements in your online presence and relevance. This is because the competition in SEO in quite fierce today with tons of websites fighting hard to get those top positions in search engine rankings. Simply put, SEO is no walk in the park and not everyone will succeed in this venture. It would require patience, dedication, and careful implementation of effective strategies to become successful.

PPC Ads, on the other hand, are shortcuts to ranking in search engines. You will normally enjoy significant results faster than SEO. The more you pay the quicker the results. If you cease payment, your ads will simply vanish in the search engine pages.

Which is one is Ideal?

The answer to this question will depend largely on your objectives and budget. If you want quick results and you have enough money to make the payments for clicks, then PPC is the suitable route. If you want something that is long lasting, then SEO is ideal. To get started with SEO, speak to one of our consultants today.

Why Your Small Business Needs a Responsive Website

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For small businesses to thrive in this competitive world, they must learn how to adapt to the technological requirements. This is especially true since most of the people are becoming more and more dependent on online technology; specifically, to search engines. And the more your website shows up in search results queries; the more likely will your business be noticed, visited, and interacted with. One of the best ways to achieve this is through a responsive website design.

A responsive website design is an SEO technique, as well as a design style, that makes a single site respond to the user’s device by adjusting its properties and screen size according to it. Simply put, it allows a website to become compatible for viewing and access to any kind of devices. A responsive web design promotes a positive browsing experience for your potential customers; making them more likely to visit your website which, in turn, could help expand your small business. But that’s not all there is to it. We have listed down some reasons below to convince you why your small business needs a responsive website:

Higher Google Search Ranking

As everyone already knows by now, Google is the go-to place online for search queries. Being the world’s largest search engine, it remains to be the most influential platform for website’s to garner exposure and visibility. And for your small business, this means being able to be seen not only ‘out’ there in Google but ‘up’ there in the search results as well. In 2015, Google added mobile presence as a factor in ranking the results. This simply points to how responsive your small business’ web design is. If your website is fully optimized to fit this requirement, then you will surely get a boost in your Google search ranking.

More User-Reach

In this day and age, it is rare to see a person not holding their mobile devices. This fact is especially true as it is found out that more and more people surf the web through their mobile phones. However, much of online mobile users avoid staying on websites that does not fit the screen size of their mobile device. As a result, a responsive website design has become very crucial for small businesses to provide great user experience.

Creates Functional Experience

At the end of the day, business is still business. And for a small business owner, having a responsive website design is a great way to promote your products and services. A responsive web design offers your potential customers a much easier way to access and interact with your business; making your website not only attractive but functional as well.

Gain More Customers

As people prefer to shop on the Internet more via their mobile devices, it is necessary for your small business to attract potential customers to your website. A responsive website design makes your website ready and convenient for online shopping. It makes your products be seen easily and potentially purchased. As a result, you will gain more customers and, more importantly, purchases.

The importance of Google Maps for your business

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Today, when people are looking for information on just about anything from popular people to places, events and even flight schedules, the majority of them would rely on the Internet to satisfy their need. If you have a business, establishing an online presence is crucial. Your customers are looking for your business on the World Wide Web, and it is your job to be seen. It’s not to say that traditional methods of advertising are no longer useful because they still are. Having a web presence, however, has never been this important as more and more consumers turn to the Internet when looking for products and services. But creating a web presence doesn’t simply mean having a website that reflects your business. It also means having it listed on Google Maps, so people are aware of your business online.

So why Google Maps? It has a lot to do with Google’s current status as the God of all search engines. Simply put, if people are searching for a business or location, they turn to the almighty Google and its handy service called Google Maps. So let’s move on how Google Maps work for businesses.

Google Maps is basically a free map-based service from Google designed to make navigating the world faster and easier. It is also the perfect tool for locating certain addresses and includes a list of nearby businesses and provides directional guidance.  So if someone is new in town and wants’ to know where the nearest pizza joint is and where the hotels are, he will normally take out his smartphone and ask Google Maps for direction. If your business is not listed in Google Maps, then it won’t appear on his screen.

So your business will become part of Google Maps listings, use your Google My Business account. And make sure that your business is listed accurately, which means that the information about its address and business hours is correct. If you accomplish this, it would be easy for people to find your business online. What’s more, people don’t have to specifically look for your business to locate it. They can use broader search queries like car accident lawyer in Phoenix, and if you happen to be one, chances are you will appear in their search.

If you have your own website, then being part of Google Maps list will help tremendously in your traffic. Google Maps has the ability to put your website in favorable search engine rankings which makes it an effective marketing tool that will cost you zero dollars. In terms of sales, orders, bookings, and new customers, the potential is immense and you don’t even have to invest boatloads of cash in traditional advertising such as TV and radio ads and billboards. When you are a small business, nothing could be sweeter than having a marketing platform that is virtually cost-free such as Google Maps.

If you want to start harnessing the marketing potential of Google Maps for your business, create your Google My Business account today. To maximize its use, ensure that you are utilizing relevant keywords to generate significant descriptions that are engaging to customers. And don’t forget to promote reviews especially from customers who had a positive experience with your product or service. It’s also important to note that you are only allowed to post a limited amount of photos and videos about your business on Google Places. You are not allowed to have more than ten photos and five videos.

If you need help in integrating your business on Google Maps or about the intricate world of SEO in general, call our team today. We are always willing and ready to help you out.

Blackhat SEO Techniques That You Need To Avoid

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As the world of SEO or Search Engine Optimization becomes more and more competitive, websites have also become more creative with their tactics and techniques to rank higher. While some of these tactics are good, the rise of “black hat SEO” is also undeniable. “Blackhat SEO” pertains to those techniques that are considered unethical methods of SEO. Its main goal is only to rank higher and nothing more. This is in contrast with “white hat SEO” which aims to improve user experience to rank higher. However, using “black hat” techniques could do more harm than good. It will only result in having your websites get penalized which is very bad for its potential Google search ranking. What’s worse, it could even result in having your websites banned from search engines entirely. To help you keep from committing such black hat SEO techniques, we have listed some of them below for you to be wary about:

Cloaking

In simple terms, cloaking is deceiving. This technique basically displays content that is different from what search engine bots and users expect. Cloaking is done through using descriptions, titles, and keywords that are so far from what the actual content is about. If found out, websites using this technique has the high possibility of being banned.

Keyword stuffing

Just as it is called, keyword stuffing is loading a webpage with too many keywords for search engines to deem it relevant. However, this technique has been effectively identified by search engines since. What they do to websites that use such techniques is give them a low-quality score and place them in a ranking that is beyond visibility.

Article spinning

While content is the key factor in SEO, it also equally matters to have relevant and useful content. This doesn’t include those that fall under article spinning. This technique is used through software that churns out or twists other pages with similar content. As a result, the original article’s quality becomes low.

Doorway pages

Doorway pages are HTML pages that only add hyper-relevance to keywords. They are not visible to users, however, since they only target search engines. But they could still lead to websites getting ignored and banned as search engine bots become more updated.

Link farms

This technique concerns the use of hyperlinks. As we all know by now, hyperlinks are links that connect one website to another. They serve the purpose of gaining credibility in search engine results. In terms of link farms, hyperlinks can be seen in a number of different websites. Its purpose, however, is only to increase in ranking and nothing else. You must be wary of this as link farms are being effectively identified and banned by major search engines such as Google and Bing.

Contrary to the belief that such black hat techniques could help boost your website’s ranking, using them could result in being penalized. Even if you see effective results in one or two days, take note that such effects are not permanent. Take note that search engine algorithms are being updated more often now. This could result in having black hat techniques detected more; resulting to a penalization or ban. Ultimately, they are not worth the risk. So it helps more to stick to more ethical ways for your search results ranking to improve.

Everything a business owner needs to know about SEO

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In the World Wide Web, visibility is crucial for any business, big or small. And one of the most effective ways to get significant exposure is through search engines. The higher your rankings in search engines, the better it would be for your websites overall visibility. Ranking in search engines, however, has become fiercely competitive. To give our clients that much-needed edge, we provide them with effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) services. We help them reach the pinnacle of Google’s rankings so they can get a step ahead of the rest of the competition. SEO is no walk in the park, and there is always something to learn even for the most experienced and savvy SEO expert. If you are still taking your baby steps in the world of SEO, here are the key things that you need to know.

Know your keywords

Keywords are one of the most fundamental aspects of SEO. These are words that your customers would tend to use when they are looking for your business in search engines. You want your business to pop up every time users enter this set of words in Google’s search box. Determining what these keywords are, therefore, is crucial. These keywords are those that are relevant to your business, your website’s content, and your potential customers. While there is no one size fits all when it comes to the number of keywords that you need to use on your website, using too much could prompt Google to consider you as a spam site.

Tailor your website

Now that you have determined what your keywords are, you should carefully tailor your website around them like a custom made site. From your main page to your about page, each part of your website should be focused on a specific set of keywords. This will optimize each page according to what your users are looking for. Put important emphasis on what you include in your title, headline, and description. Be sure that everything reads naturally.

Focus on your content

Now that you have tailored your website for optimum visibility, the next thing that you need to focus on is creating content that will keep visitors interested. Ask yourself, why would your visitor even bother reading your website’s content? If it is because it would be helpful and relevant to them, then you are on the right track. Also, if you provide users with what they need, Google will reward your site with better rankings. And don’t forget to regularly reinforce your site’s content. The more content you have, the better it would be for your rankings.

Generate backlinks

Backlinks are those links that ferry people from one website to another. It is also the number one factor that Google uses to rank websites. As a good rule of thumb, the more backlinks you have from reputable websites, the higher your chances are of getting ranked. This is because Google and other search engines will look at your site as trustworthy and reliable. One of the best things you can do to garner quality backlinks (those backlinks coming from authority sites) is to reach out to influential people in your industry and social media to promote backlinks, as well as generating compelling content that people want to link to.

Was everything too much to digest? Did it appear overwhelming? Fortunately, we have you covered. We specialize in ranking website effectively so you can enjoy the best results possible to attract more customers and of course rake in more money. Get in touch today for a free consultation.

5 Easy to Follow Tips to Obtain a Speedy Website

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apple, computer, deskEverything is now fast, right? Everyone is in a hurry to finish their respective tasks. Internet users do not have all day to find solutions. Hence, a website’s speed is important. This guide will not be filled with jargons and heavy technological terms. In this post, the tips and tricks are easy to follow and will definitely help your website load faster.

 

  • Tip #1: Compress your images at all times.
    • Images take up more of the page size than texts. If a website has a huge page size, it will take more time to load. You do not have to remove all images, but you just have to reduce the images’ file size or reduce its resolution. For example, a picture with a 1024x 768 resolution is unnecessary. It is an ideal wallpaper size, but not in a blog post.

 

  • Tip #2: Get down to the basics.
    • Choose a fast and an uncomplicated theme. All the colorful design will be useless if your website that a long time to load. A slow website will definitely annoy visitors even if it has a beautiful and visually pleasing design. Keep it simple first and gradually, add an element to optimize the website until you get the look you want.

 

  • Tip #3: Clean up your website.
    • As your website grows, you will, of course, gain followers and you will also get a ton of junk. You have to constantly clean your website like what you do everyday to your house. The drafts can take up space. For example, if you have more than thirty revisions, you better clean those up. Another one that you could do is to monitor comments. Fifteen copies of the same comment are totally redundant. Anything that is not necessary should be removed. A little dusting can boost your website so delete those duplicates because there’s no need to be pack rat!

 

  • Tip #4: Delete idle images, plugins, themes.
    •  Over time, your website will change so those previously used images, plugins, and themes should be erased. The images that you uploaded, whether you used them or not, will consume space. Better remove those unattached pictures. For plugins, you have to deactivate it first and discard the ones you do not use anymore. If you are already using a new theme, what’s the point of keeping the old one?

 

  • Tip #5: Arrange your homepage.
    • Summarize your posts and avoid showing the full post on your main page. Instead, add an excerpt of what visitors can expect. As much as possible, limit the posts you will show in one page. Provide helpful options like “next” or “show more” that the visitors can click.

 

After you have done the tips mentioned above… use a tool called Pingdom to test speed of your website.

To use Pingdom, just enter your website’s link and the results will immediately appear. The results are easy to understand. “A” is the highest score a website can get and F is the lowest. Loading time is also indicated. You will know how long it will take for your website to load. One factor is the page size. The larger the page size, the more time it takes to load.

4 Things You Should Invest In When Making a Website

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Low Angle View of Laptop KeyboardIf you finally decide to turn your humble business into an online business, there are certain things you need to consider. Businesses gradually abandon brick and mortar stores to accommodate international orders through an accessible website. What are the things you need to create a functional website? This list includes: a website design, domain name, good host, and creative photos.

Let us begin with the design.

  • Your website’s design should be simple yet professional looking. Like a house, you need to choose the color palette that suits your personality. A colorful design might not be necessary; better get the light and fast design instead. Whether the website will be browsed on a desktop computer or a mobile phone, it has to be responsive in all platforms and devices. People are always moving and traveling so it is imperative to consider your mobile viewers. Here at Scottsdale Website Design, we cater to all types of businesses. If you are working on a budget, we have numerous design packages that will be ideal for you.

You have to invest on a domain name.

  • Your domain name should be relevant to the content of your website, and the same time, it also has to be unique. Add your own flavor so your website will stand out from similar online stores. People might not find your website so keep the name simple and short as possible. Remember that your domain name is going to be your identity so you have to be certain that people can easily recall it. No one likes a very long and complicated website address.

A great host is tantamount to a reliable host.

  • If the domain name is your address, the host is your house. If your house constantly has numerous interruptions, a glowing address is worthless. Ask yourself these serious questions: will the website be assured to be running 24/7? If your web host cannot provide you excellent uptime scores, consider other options. Cheap rates are does not mean good hosting. Your business is online now so it is important to be always open for business to cater to customers from different parts of the world.  Will my website handle huge bulk of orders simultaneously? Make sure your website never goes down despite heavy traffic. For now, it’s fine since you are still starting. But always check if the hosting is flexible for future plans of expansion. Will my website load quickly? The customers’ time is limited so the website’s speed is ultimately relevant. Go for a host that loads content fast wherever the customer might be.

Lastly, get creative!

  • An expensive editing software and a DSLR camera are not necessary. There’s no price for creativity so go get your point-and-shoot camera and experiment. Include images when you are posting on your website or social media accounts. There are a lot of free photo editing softwares online so take time to learn using them. A basic photo editor that allows you to add text, resize, and trim your photos is enough. (Read more on the importance of compressing images here.) Don’t have the photography skills, do not worry because you can always find stock photos online. If all else fails, you can always buy artistic images.

5 Mobile Apps That Are Great for Business

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architect, composition, dataYears ago, people would work at in front of a big and clunky desktop computer. Now, work is very much doable on mobile, too. You can chat, call, and even collaborate with your colleagues while you are on the go. As long as you have a mobile internet, these programs will surely help you work using your mobile device. This list of apps varies from security, communication, and social networking.

  • Flowdock

    • You can download it on GooglePlay and AppStore.
      • Flow dock is the perfect team chat app that integrates with other apps like Trello, Github, and Jera. Stay connected with all your colleagues across teams, and locations. The great thing about Flowdock is that you can create several chat groups for different teams. No need for the entire organization to crowd in one single channel. You can divide the chats by group, team, or department. The marketing team will not be notified about updates on the HR department. It is impossible to miss an important chat when you focus on your designated channel. You can also integrate it to Twitter. This is an excellent choice if your business is active on Twitter. You will get notified when your scheduled tweets go live. Flowdock is perfect if your focus is social media.

  • Hootsuite

    • Download it on GooglePlay or AppStore.
      • These days, there’s a lot of social media platforms you have to keep up with. With Hootsuite, you don’t have to download different applications and there’s no need to constantly switch from one app to another.  You can save time by managing all of your social media account from one dashboard. Whether it is on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, your accounts are all in one place. The best part of HootSuite is that you can schedule updates for both Twitter and Instagram. You can stay post updates in all your accounts. No need to constantly copy and paste to different platforms.

  • Hotspot Shield

    • Get it on GooglePlay and AppStore.
      • When you are constantly traveling, and working at airports, cafes, and public WiFi hotspots, security is the number one concern. With Hotspot Shield, you can disguise your online identity. It will take care of the WiFi security for you, and there’s no need to worry for hackers to be intruding with your personal affairs. This is a free app, but if you wish to use its other features available, you would have to buy the premium version. Aside from keeping your activities private and anonymous, Hotspot Shield allows you to access blocked websites that utilizes a huge bandwidth allocation.

  • Blue Jeans

    • Available on GooglePlay and AppStore
      • When you have Blue Jeans, video conferencing will be very easy. This is a universal application that allows you to have video calls with your colleagues even if  they are using Cisco, Microsoft Lync, Skype, and other different platforms. Wherever you are, you can easily host a call or join an existing conference. With the free service, one conference call can have 25 participants. Once you avail the premium service, you can invite up to 100 people to your call.

  • Bulkly

    • See monthly plans here.
      • With Bulkly, social media automation will become an easy task. This will help you send updates on different social media accounts. For as low as $12 per month, you can schedule up to 1,000 posts each month, connect 1 Buffer account, recycle old content, and many more. They offer a 7-day free trial so don’t miss this chance to make your online accounts management easier. Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, Bulkly can handle it!

4 VPN Softwares that Will Let You Browse Without Restrictions

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device, internet, pixelsWhen you are using a public WiFi, it probably has a lot of restrictions and you will not be able to access certain websites. When you travel to some countries with heavy censorship, these programs listed below will absolutely help you out. For example, in China, YouTube is not accessible. They have their own video streaming sites like youku.com, iqiyi.com, and le.com. For whatever reason, you can now access numerous websites with the support of these programs.

  • UltraSurf
    • Price: FREE. Get it here!
      • UltraSurf is a lightweight and portable software you can carry around. There is no need for to install it. Once you have download Ultrasulf, just have to double click it and it’s working. No need to go through complicated procedures and the best part is that no registration is necessary. If you are sharing a computer, whether at home or at work, UltraSurf is a convenient program that will help you bypass restrictions and limits. Save it in your thumb drive and you can easily surf the internet wherever you may be.
  • Cyber Ghost VPN
    • Price: FREE. Download it here! You can get the paid version starting at $2.5 per month.
      • The free version of Cyber Ghost will still get you to surf anonymously, but it will contain ads. If it annoys, you have the option to upgrade to the premium service. Plus, the paid version is faster and allows you to connect 5 devices. If you are only using one device, the free version is still a great deal. You can still access video streaming websites, torrent anonymously, and update your social media accounts like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
  • Spotflux
    • Price: FREE. Get it here! If you wish to upgrade, monthly subscription starts at $4.99.
      • Like Cyber Ghost VPN, Spotflux has a paid version. The free version has a limited access to all its features. The great thing about it is that it’s a cross-platform application. Spotflux guarantees you that it will work on every device whether it is Windows, Mac OS, iOS, or Android. Just download, install, and enjoy the internet like you always do. Spotflux will take care of the configurations by itself so you do not have to worry if you clicked the wrong option. Installation is absolutely fast and easy. Try it now!
  • Tor Browser
    • Price: FREE. Download it here!
      • Tor is a 100% free software that will help you protect your privacy. Tor browser prevents others to learn about your location and internet activity. It allows you to connect to different sites, instant messaging clients, or any website that is blocked by your local Internet service providers. The downside of Tor is that it is slower than the other paid services listed.

 

Browse with caution.

These programs will not be able to solve ALL anonymity problems. To fully protect yourself, be careful things you share online. Refrain from sharing every detail of your life. Whether you are doing an online transaction, or just browsing for interesting articles, no one will know from where you are connecting, who you are through the help of these programs. Internet privacy is important. It concerns all of us.

8 Safety Tips in Preventing Malware Infections

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computer, desk, laptopWith all the online threats, it’s easy to get paranoid and conclude that your computer has been infected, that this website will steal your information, and that this email contains viruses. Practice secure computing and advise everyone else to do the same.

  • Be careful of email attachments. Most probably, the emails you got are just spam especially if you are not waiting for some important email from work. Do not haphazardly open every email you have received. Most importantly, do not download email attachments from unknown origins.
  • Verify email messages. Some email messages seem to be from people you know, or to be from services that you currently use. Always check the sender’s email address. For example, if you are using PayPal when purchasing online, all official emails should be sent via PayPal.com. If you have received emails from services providers like Aol.com, or Gmail.com, then, these people are just pretending to be someone from PayPal. This is what you call a phishing scam. Please do not interact with these emails especially if it contains questionable attachments.
  • Do not set devices to “auto run”. If you are fond on inserting an external storage devices to your computer, do not set it to auto run.  To have protect your computer, manually open your storage devices, DVDs, email attachments. If it’s in auto run, it is usually the malwares that run first.
  • Scan all devices that is from someone else. Thumb drives, or practically any external device can carry a malicious software and these software programs are usually small so they can surely fit in any media device there is.
  • Scan all new software before you install it. Whether if the program is free or you paid for it, it is safe to scan any software you wish to install in your computer. Who knows something is hidden on that free digital download, or trial DVD?
  • Back up your files frequently. Keep important files safe, and do not save it on the same computer. Preferably, you should have an external device that is strictly for important files in case your computer gets infected. Always have a back up other than your computer. You can also store these files online. When files are online, it is also vulnerable to intrusion. Offline back up is better.
  • If you have Windows PC, it is recommended to install all Microsoft security updates. Update your Windows Defender (for Windows 8 and above), and Microsoft Security Essentials (for Windows 7). These will provide you real-time protection especially if you often connect external devices to your computer.
  • Make sure that your malware scanners virus and spyware definitions are up to date. If they are old, they will probably not detect new malwares that could be lurking around.

No security solution offers 100% protection.

You have to be careful when opening a file you will execute on your computer. If possible, Scan ALL the files, at least, scan the ones from skeptical sources. You can use Jotti’s Malware Scanner; it is an online malware scanner that uses 18 different scanners. You can upload files you have receive there, or you can also use Norton’s Safe Web to scan the safety and security of a particular website.